Avanti Says Fingerprint Scans Were Not Compromised In Micromarket Data Breach

TUKWILA, WA -- Avanti Markets said no biometric information from customers paying by finger scan was captured during a recent security breach, contrary to earlier concerns. Over the July 4 holiday, Avanti discovered that hackers managed to gain access to some of its internal networks through a third-party software provider that impacted some of its kiosks. | READ MORE

"Our team acted swiftly to contain the intrusion. We believe we were successful in doing so within hours after learning of this threat," said Avanti chief executive Jim Brinton in a statement. "However, the malware may have resulted in the capture of some kiosk users' personal information, including names and credit and debit card information."

He said the fingerprint scans used with the "U.are.U 4500" fingerprint scanner supplied by Avanti Markets are all encrypted, and were not vulnerable to the intrusion.

"It is important to note that the malware affected only a small portion of our kiosks," Brinton said. "At the time of this incident, Avanti Markets was in the midst of providing updated encryption technology to be installed on all kiosks. We expect this new technology to be installed on all kiosks by the end of July."